Quick! Win 2 tickets for La Soiree this Friday at The Roundhouse, Camden

November 23rd, 2011 by Penny Golightly

Forget a quiet night down your local this Friday – you could be at the biggest block-busting cabaret, new burlesque and alternative variety show in town instead. That’s right, we have a pair of tickets up for grabs for the 10pm La Soiree show at The Roundhouse in Camden for Friday 25 November. Get in!

Want to win? Email [address removed - comp closed] as quick as you can with ‘Tickets’ in the subject line, and remember to leave your name and mobile number – we MUST be able to contact you at 5pm tomorrow afternoon if you’re the lucky winner of the two tickets, so we can make arrangements with the box office in good time.

Many thanks to aka for providing this excellent prize. Now get emailing!!

T&Cs: Competition closes 5pm on Thursday 24th November. Winner chosen from emails using random.org. NO ALTERNATIVE TIMES OR DATES AVAILABLE. No cash alternative, prize not transferable. Winner must be able to collect and use tickets for 10pm La Soiree performance of at Camden Roundhouse.

 

Book reviews: Auberge du Chocolat, and Natural Soap

November 10th, 2011 by Penny Golightly

Two book reviews for you today from the latest New Holland Publishing catalogue, plus your chance to win one of them!

The first one is Auberge du Chocolat: The secrets of fine chocolate making, by Anne Scott. This book really is something else, and it would make a perfect Christmas gift for a foodie friend, partner or relative.

If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to melt, temper and work with chocolate, this book shows you how. It will also give you the confidence to create all the classic fillings, and work with interesting new flavour combinations. The author has a real can-do approach, so after reading you’re left feeling like you could just get on with it and make some really special treats, either for your own consumption or giving as quality gifts.

There are separate sections on decorating and presenting your chocolates, dairy-free chocolates, and making choc treats with kids. If you follow the instructions you should definitely be able to create professional looking gourmet chocolates at home after reading, if you just take your time and don’t rush. Photographs are plentiful, and mouth-wateringly attractive.

Auberge du Chocolat by Anne Scott is published by New Holland and has an RRP of £16.99. It’s currently on offer at Amazon for £8.99, with free super saver delivery.

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Our second book is Natural Soap, by Melinda Cross. It focuses on traditional soapmaking techniques and has a strong emphasis on natural ingredients. The author began making soap as a hobby, and then became a professional supplier of natural soaps and toiletries.

It begins with a through explanation of the basics of natural soapmaking, and describes the properties of all the ingredients that can be used to make it. You won’t find any bright colours, artificial perfumes, or melt and pour in here, but that’s really all part of the charm – and the products look luxurious. The largest part of the book is given over to a whole range of different soapmaking projects, including bar soaps, liquid soaps, and scrub soaps, each with presentation and wrapping tips.

As an added bonus there are also recipes for shampoos, shaving soap, bath melts, and an impressive range of creams and lotions at the back of the book. To top it all off, there’s a section about turning your hobby into a small business – this is concise and direct, and gives you a realistic idea of what is necessary if you want to be successful.

Natural Soap by Melinda Coss has an RRP of £8.99. At the time of writing this review it’s available on Amazon for £5.03, and qualifies for free super saver delivery.

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COMPETITION TIME: If you would like to win a hardback copy of Auberge du Chocolat, just leave a ‘yes please!’ message in the comments section below. We’ll pick a winner at random from all the comments at lunch time next Friday.

Good luck everyone!

T&Cs: UK entrants only please, winner picked using random.org. No cash alternative. Only one entry per person please – multiple entries will be disqualified. Competition closes at noon on Friday 18 November 2011.

The BrandAlley £100 challenge

February 1st, 2011 by Penny Golightly

In January, I was challenged to spend £100 at BrandAlley UK and get the best value for money that I could find. Here are my top picks, plus a chance for one lucky winner to win a £50 BrandAlley voucher.

So far, so exciting. What was I going to order? If you’ve never used this site before, they offer short term sales of different branded goods that are often reduced by 20 to 70% from the normal RRP. In any given week they might offer boutique sales of designer clothes, beauty products, jewellery, shoes, gifts, electricals and homewares. I’m a big fan.

Now, value for money is a subjective concept. One person’s must-have bargain is another person’s surplus requirement, after all. I decided to make purchases that I knew I’d use a lot, or that would help me make more use of other things in my wardrobe. Here are my personal purchases, and the reasoning behind them.

1. A pair of Enzja Nucci boots, reduced to £19.00. Some comfy everyday boots to wear with jeans or day dresses, to replace a similar pair that I’ve worn to death.

2. A pair of Divine Factory ankle boots, reduced to £19.00. They’re the perfect heel height to go with longer trousers for smart meetings during the colder weather, and foxy enough to wear with any dress or skinny jeans.

3. A J’aime ce Look fitted jacket, reduced to £15.00. A stretchy jersey jacket that will smarten up scruffy outfits, and give a more urban edge to girly dresses.

4. A J’aime ce Look cropped jacket, reduced to £15.00. I’m going to use this to make spring and autumn clothes that little bit warmer, so I can wear more of the other things in my wardrobe. It also comes with a black rosette brooch so you can wear it folded open or pinned closed.

5. A J’aime ce Look slimline coat, reduced to £25.00. I love this coat. It replaces another much-loved warm coat that had a bit of an accident. So technically I need this coat, as well as loving it.

6. Three vintage billboard mugs from Rex International, reduced to £2.00 each. I drink a lot of tea while I’m working so these will be put to good use. They also make me laugh in an Alice In Wonderland meets Monty Python sort of way.

Now the eagle-eyed amongst you may have spotted that I only managed to spend £99. It’s just the way it worked out – better to underspend than to overspend at the end of January though. I could have easily gone completely over-budget, there were so many goodies to choose from.

Competition: If you’d like to win yourself a £50 shopping spree at BrandAlley (where your £50 could go an extremely long way), all you have to do is answer the following question by leaving your answer in the comments box below. I spent £99 on things I really wanted, but how much did I save on the total RRP of these goods? Give your estimated answers to the nearest whole £, and the winner will be chosen on the 18th of February.

Terms and conditions: One entry per household please, multiple entries will be disqualified. No cash alternative. UK entrants only. Your email address will not be used by this site or passed on to any third parties, only the winner’s email will be used to contact them.

Competition: Win £75 to spend at Officers Club

January 25th, 2011 by Penny Golightly

Gents, is your winter wardrobe in need of a little refresh? Here’s some good news for you: Officers Club, those fine purveyors of top value men’s clothes, are generously offering one lucky www.pennygolightly.com reader the chance to win a coupon code worth £75 to spend on some new threads.

That £75 could go a very long way too. Even if you aren’t fortunate enough to win, you can still take advantage of the final stage of their clearance sale, with men’s jeans from £9, men’s t-shirts from £3 and knitwear from £6. These offers are available both in-store and on their website, plus there’s free delivery on orders over £50.

Competition: To be in with a chance of winning, all you have to do is visit the Officers Club website and then leave a comment below of 20 words or less, telling us which is your favourite single item of clothing on their site, and why you like it so much. Competition closes on 28th of January, 2011.

Terms and conditions: One entry per household please, multiple entries will be disqualified. No cash alternative. UK entrants only. Your email address will not be used by this site or passed on to any third parties, only the winner’s email will be used to contact them.
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